


Enjoy the silence

by nensha



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Being Lost, Bitterness, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Internal Conflict, Internal Monologue, M/M, Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-21 13:01:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30022176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nensha/pseuds/nensha
Summary: Post Temperance ending. Johnny decides to tell Kerry what happened to V.
Relationships: Kerry Eurodyne & Johnny Silverhand, Kerry Eurodyne/V
Comments: 14
Kudos: 30





	Enjoy the silence

**Author's Note:**

> So this piece of text is hellsheep's fault again ;) One of her chapters and our talk about whether Johnny should tell Kerry what happened or not, inspired me to write another piece of fanfiction.
> 
> Gotta admit, I feel better at comedies, but I enjoyed writing the descriptive part.
> 
> (The title is of course a Depeche Mode song - was listening to it while publishing. I had absolutely no idea for the title, but this one seemed almost too perfect.)

Alcohol tasted exceptionally bitter that night.

Not that it was ever tasty – Kerry Eurodyne hated to admit that, but he always thought it would be awesome if booze tasted like good, aromatic coffee. Or some kind of soda, at least. On the other hand, the awful aftertaste was the only thing that was stopping him from emptying the whole supply he had at home. Hadn't been for that, he would probably drink himself to death.

_Ah, screw this._

Kerry took a sip from the glass he was holding and looked at the glowing city behind the glass pane once again. Every time he was watching that neon-lit, living monster, he felt… peaceful. He always knew what to expect from Night City; no surprises, no unresolved issues, no sudden changes. The city wasn't an easy place to live, but it was honest, brutally honest and predictable – which Kerry really appreciated. They were like an old, married couple. Maybe a bit bored with each other after all those years, but also perfectly compatible, so who cared?

He spun the glass gently and observed the stirred liquid for a moment. Kerry knew what was coming now. The buzz in the back of his skull after having a couple of drinks was a familiar warning. Those lonely evening seances always ended up more or less the same: morning hangover, some broken glass on the floor, sometimes even shattered window. He never cared, though. It was the manager's job to clean the mess, not his.

 _So fuckin' pathetic_ , he thought for the hundredth time that night and emptied the glass in one gulp.

Kerry wasn't the kind of man who would drown his sorrows after shitty break ups. Not for a long time, at least. In fact, he's always thought that there was nothing more pitiful than getting smashed after being dumped. When you've lived a long life you eventually learn not to worry about such minor inconveniences, but rather wash them down with a final shot, have a good laugh at memories and move on. Kerry had all the reasons to think this case would be the same, but apparently, life had different plans.

Actually, it was quite surprising that it would be an ordinary merc. That guy was neither the most handsome, nor the funniest one among Kerry's inputs, yet somehow letting go turned out to be disturbingly problematic this time. It all went well most of the days, when he could spend time in the recording studio, do business meetings or party at trendy nightclubs to keep his mind occupied. But then a long night like this would eventually come, just to make Kerry realise once again that if it seemed like he had already forgotten... then, well, it only seemed so.

"Boom. Two down," said Kerry to himself, as he poured into the glass the rest of… what was that, again? Whiskey? Vodka? Ah, hell. It didn't matter. All that counted was that he needed bottle number three now.

That reminded Kerry it's been three weeks with absolutely no word from that motherfucker. Of course he tried to catch up at the beginning, left a few voicemails and emails, but to no avail. Not a single word, as if anybody like that never existed and all was just a cheap braindance. Kerry wasn't used to having been dumped like that and suspected that his own wounded pride might have been the reason he couldn't come to terms with it. It felt like someone has finally managed to make a dent in the thick armour he was wearing to survive every day. A shallow dent, admittedly, but it was still annoying to have it there.

_Ding-dong._

The doorbell? Kerry checked the time – it was almost twenty minutes after midnight. _Who the fuck...?_ He hesitated for a moment, but went downstairs. It probably wasn't the wisest thing to do, open the doors at night in this city, but Kerry was drunk already and didn't care much. He knew it could be a psycho fan who really wanted to get an autograph – it happened from time to time – but kicking the unwanted guest out and yelling at them to go to hell might be exactly what he needed.

However, the exact moment he was opening the door, a fleeting thought crossed his mind. _Why the hell the security bots didn't start the alarm?_

"Well, fuck me," said Kerry, when he saw V behind the door. He blinked a few times, thinking it was just a drunk dream, but no – the same person was standing on the doorstep. "Never thought you'd show up again, asshole."

"Johnny this time. Good to see you too, Ker."

Oh. That was... disappointing. But also kind of predictable.

"Yeah, sure," snapped Kerry. "Shoulda known it wasn't that jerk."

"Mind if I come in?" asked Johnny. He didn't pay attention to Kerry's last comment.

"Not sure if I want to look at your ugly face now, but come on in."

Johnny entered the house, even though Kerry noticed how he hesitated for a split second. He lowered head a bit and it almost seemed like he didn't want to be here.

"Having fun?" asked Johnny, pointing at an empty bottle in Kerry's hand when they both sat on white couches downstairs.

"Nah, not really." Kerry shook his head. "Look Johnny, you came for a reason or what? If ya just missed me, I'm not sure if 'tis the best moment."

"Right. Can see that. Binge drinking alone? How much already?"

 _Preem, just preem._ Johnny came here at night, wearing _his_ face and had the nerve to give a lecture on drinking too much. Kerry felt the anger slowly welling up inside himself, but swallowed it before he said something unpleasant.

"None of your biz, Johnny. I'm a big boy." Kerry grabbed the bottle standing on the coffee table and sniffed the content. _Uh, pure vodka._ "Sorry I won't pour a shot for you, but I'm not in the mood for a party. You wanted something?" He made an impatient hand gesture.

Johnny sighed.

"Won't take much of your precious time, a few words and you can go back to the bottle again. Just thought you might want to know. V... he's not gonna talk to you anymore."

"Figured that much already. I'm not an idiot, y'know. Wastin' your time."

"Like, anymore," continued Johnny, ignoring the last remark. "Ker, I mean it. He just can't talk to you. Never. You understand what I'm talking about?"

Kerry snorted. Of course he understood. Somehow he knew from the very moment he saw Johnny on the doorstep that this visit couldn't mean a friendly reunion. And yet... it still sounded strange, especially that it was coming from _his_ mouth.

"What... what exactly happened?" asked Kerry.

"There's not that much to talk about," started Johnny. "We both went to Mikoshi to split up, the plan was that I go, he stays. But shit got messed up, the biochip did some changes in the body's neural system. If he stayed, he'd live six months at best. In my case, the body is fully compatible and will be working until my natural death. We just both decided it would be the best if he... disappeared." He shrugged.

Again, Kerry could feel like pure anger was buzzing inside him. He didn't believe Johnny that it was their mutual decision. It just... wasn't possible. V would never agree to that, even if it meant dying soon. It just made no sense. No fucking sense V would leave him.

"You fuckin' liar," growled Kerry, clenching his fists. "I'll never believe that. You stole his body for yourself! You _killed_ him!" he yelled.

"Well, believe what you want, if it makes you feel better." Johnny seemed offended. "But gotta admit, thought you know me well, Ker. It seems you knew neither me nor V."

Upon hearing those words, Kerry got so furious that he nearly blacked out. He rushed to Johnny, ready to punch him into the face, but Johnny was faster. Well, having that merc's body now, with all the cyberware, it wasn't that surprising... The blow in the chest was so powerful that Kerry collapsed onto the floor, trying to catch a breath.

"Get... the fuck... out..." he gasped, looking at Johnny angrily and pointing at the door. "Never want to... see you... again!"

"As you wish, motherfucker," snarled Johnny. "Don't care. I was gonna leave the city anyway, but wanted to be fair to you."

"For what? To feel... better? Why can't you just stop haunting me?!" shouted Kerry. He hated that sudden tearful tone in his voice.

"Wasn't exactly planning on coming here," admitted Johnny slowly. "Just thought you, of all people, deserve to know what happened to V."

"And you waited... three weeks to tell me that?" Kerry still could feel that hit. _Man, he was strong now..._ "No reply to my messages? You let me feel like shit... for all that fuckin' time?!"

Johnny stood up and looked at Kerry with a sad smile. Very sad smile. Suddenly, Kerry felt like all the accusation he wanted to spout, all his anger just... didn't matter anymore.

"Guess it must be remorse or something. You _were_ my friend."


End file.
